Winter Leaves

Winter Leaves by Odin Roark Seemingly adrift Without care Emblematic of interim homelessness Yet They rest unraked Awaiting the next frost The next thaw The cyclic disintegration The sequence they know so well Still We The conscious ones See not the wisdom of their seasonal trial That arctic-like mission Taking them to where they need to be Come spring The mulch of the winter Delivers the gift The nutrients for realizing Spring’s glory The cycle’s inevitable reconnect Some might see it like love Except nature knows Without the up down Bloom /wilting Life/ death There is no continuum Blossoming Lest we forget The same tree Bush Vine Doesn’t pack it in Just because Temperatures go seasonally cold When will we learn The heart The mind The being Like all of nature Is meant to be susceptible? And Like our favorite flower We too Are vulnerable The difference is The plant knows Cycles are not only innocent They are like the nature of everything Knowing reality loathes tampering And perhaps The reason leaves naturally go on Nurture the next generation Without agenda Is they’re gifted over us They don’t have sentience To mess them up